Vineyards – Wine production

Our Vintage Tractor

This vintage Tractor is with our family since 1978. Our Father bought it when grandfather sold the mule and buried our donkey. It performs all the toughest jobs on our farm with no questions asked. It plough’s our crops, drags logs, carries piles of stones, but also tons of grapes, peaches, apples, vegetables and hay…

The tractor is simple but with robust mechanics, graceful design and is endlessly reliable. After 35 years of service, it earned its restoration. A new installation of lighting fixtures, seats, tires, clutch and was fully repainted. Although it ran over 3600 hours, its engine, still needs no repair.

Vineyards & Wine production

Vineyards are grown in Konavle for centuries. Surely, our ancestors were taught by the ancient Greeks when they founded a colony in this region, the city of Epidaurus, today’s Cavtat. Since then, wine is one of the main agricultural products of which are people live from. Besides the struggle for wages and traveling distant worlds as immigrant workers, our ancestors also cleared the tough rocky terrain to plant more vines and produce better wine.

Today wine is not our core business, but our vineyards and wine nurture specific emotions. Wine is much more than just a product. In our vineyards we still grow an excellent red Merlot and white Dubrovnik Malvasia. Duro, one of the hosts is a well-trained winemaker who follows the process of cultivation, production and carefully nurtures all the wines enjoyed by our guests. You can taste and buy bottled wines in our little cellar shop. Our plan is to expand the plantation production of these high-quality varieties. If desired, you can contact us to help and become a guardian of a number of grapevines. We will carefully cultivate grapes and keep wine for your return.

Well chilled Malvasia goes very well with delicious baking under the bell as well as light meals. Merlot goes well with Konavle Menestra, lovorske skewer and ham and cheese. With Padispanj you will enjoy a glass of Prosecco, a sweet wine made of Malvasia grapes. The grape harvest is a special event for the whole family, as well as our guests. Due to weather conditions and varieties the Konavle harvest begins in late August and continues through September. Controlled fermentation procedure ends relatively quickly so that some young wines can be already consumed at Christmas. Naturally, the maturation of each wine is an important process. Reserve some of your time and become part of the joyful, agricultural activities in Konavle. If you are organizing or planning a team building event, then this is certainly a unique opportunity!

The Dubrovnik Malvasia Wine

The most famous grape is Malvasia of Dubrovnik. It is a Konavle indigenous variety. It is not certain whether it arrived to Konavle, was brought by the ancient Greeks or actually originated from this region. It has been scientifically proven that the Malvasija related grape is found only on “Lipari” Islands next to Sicily, Canary Islands and som Sites in Catalonia. In our area the Dubrovnik Malvasia grape is found only in Konavle.

The Dubrovnik nobility extremely treasured Malvasia wine. It was considered a special delicacy that had a very high value. Old archive records of the Dubrovnik Republic (dating back in 1383 A.C.), when Konavle was not part of Dubrovnik, mention and honour the Malvasia grape; “So, a Dr. Bartholomew seeks permission from the Dubrovnik Senate to import a small amount of Malvasia for treatment purposes”. The Dubrovnik Malvasia was served to the most prominent guests. It was an indispensable gift to the Roman Pope as well as the Sultan of Constantinople. Malvasia was almost extinct in Konavle.

In the seventies of the last century the last vines were preserved. With the help of the Croatian Institute of Wine, the past ten years a renewed large-scale production was accomplished. Today, Konavle produce Dubrovnik Malvasia wines that achieve remarkable results. The most popular product is a Prosecco Sherry produced from selected dried grapes. This premium authentic variety has a very high alcohol and sugar that retains a distinct fruity aroma.

Besides Malvasia, in Konavle other white wine varieties such as, Marastina and Posip are very well known just as excellent red wines like; Plavac, Merlot, Cabernet, Cormorant, Kadarun and other varieties. Growing grapes and production of wine and spirits has a long tradition in our family.